EMIRATES LAUNCHES BARCELONA SERVICE

*Double daily Madrid flights as of 1st July 2012

* DUBAI, UAE – 3rd July 2012 – Emirates launched flights to Barcelona today as part of a tripling of services to Spain.

The airline’s daily flight to Madrid went double daily on 1st July and coupled with the brand new Barcelona route, the carrier now offers three flights a day into the country.

The VIP delegation aboard today’s first flight to Barcelona included Salem Obaidalla, Emirates’ Senior Vice President, Commercial Operations, Europe & Russian Federation; Hiran Perera, Emirates’ Senior Vice President, Cargo Planning & Freighters; Brigadier Obaid Mehayer Bin Suroor, Deputy Director of Dubai Naturalisation & Residency Department; José Eugenio Salarich, Spain’s Ambassador to the UAE and representatives from the media.

Passengers booked from 20 countries, including the UAE, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, South Korea and Indonesia, also joined the inaugural flight.   

“In the space of 48 hours, Spain has shot up our list of most served European countries, said Salem Obaidalla, Emirates’ Senior Vice President, Commercial Operations, Europe & Russian Federation. “Connecting Spain to our network with three flights a day from what was a daily flight to Madrid is a major boost to our operations and underscores our commitment to the Spanish market.”   

In Barcelona, Fernando Suárez de Góngora, Emirates Country Manager for Spain, hosted a welcoming reception attended by Sonia Corrochano, Director, Barcelona El Prat Airport and Damià Calvet i Valero, Territory and Mobility Secretary of the regional Catalan government.

With the new Emirates’ service between Barcelona and Dubai, the Catalan capital gets connected to one of the most important cities and regions for business worldwide,” said Mr Damià Calvet. “Emirates has valued Barcelona and its airport as a good opportunity within its global growth strategy. To Barcelona and the Catalonia region, this route also represents an opportunity for the globalisation of Catalan enterprises and for the region’s economy, key elements to get over the economic crisis.”  

Emirates will serve Barcelona with a 777-300ER offering 360 in a three-class configuration. Staffed by highly trained, multi-lingual cabin crew, the aircraft offers luxurious First Class Private Suites, lie-flat seats in Business Class and a new generation of comfort in Economy Class.